Centers

Our commitment to expanding the science supporting our disciplines has placed our college first or second in National Institutes of Health funding for colleges of health professions over the last several years, and among the top 20 in NIH funding for colleges of public health.

Florida Center for Medicaid and the Uninsured

The mission of the FCMU is to conduct research, policy analysis, and education on issues related to access, quality, and cost of health care for underserved populations. Critical to our mission is the timely dissemination of information to policy makers, providers, and advocates. FCMU serves as a campuswide home for researchers and analysts interested in issues related to access to quality health care for Florida’s diverse and vulnerable populations with significantly lower rates of employer-sponsored health insurance and higher rates of uninsurance relative to national averages.

Lessons learned in Florida have implications for the nation as a whole. The center advances its mission in a number of ways. First, the center actively pursues grants and contracts from national foundations and agencies to support the work of UF health services researchers interested in underserved populations. Second, the center serves as a resource to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) for the study of issues pertaining to state health policy. In this regard, the center engages in a contractual arrangement with AHCA to research issues that pertain to the development of policy options for Florida Medicaid. The dissemination of data, findings, and policy options to stakeholders is a key element of the center’s work. In addition to publication in major health services research journals, the center produces and distributes policy papers, issue briefs, and fact sheets. The center also holds periodic meetings and forums that engage Florida’s lawmakers, their staff, and other advocates in health policy debates. Critical to the expansion and sustainability of health services research is the development of younger researchers and analysts. The center is committed to serving as a research base for graduate students interested in low-income and vulnerable populations.

Institute for Mobility, Activity and Participation (I-MAP)

Located within the College of Public Health and Health Professions at the University of Florida, the Institute for Mobility, Activity and Participation (I-MAP) was formed earlier in 2009 to support a substantial increase in driving-related research which expanded beyond projects in older driver safety. Research on (older) driver safety was previously supported by the National Older Driver Research and Training Center (NODRTC) at the University of Florida. Sherrilene Classen, PhD, MPH, OTR/L, is the director of I-MAP, the umbrella under which all research related to driver safety, and mobility, are being conducted.

The goal of I-MAP is to conduct driver safety research related to all age groups, study the use of alternative transportation options such as use of scooters or buses, and personal mobility such as getting around at home and walking. Within I-MAP researchers will execute these activities as a means to preserve, promote and improve independent, safe and appropriate mobility for individuals and within populations.

Currently, researchers at I-MAP are engaged in projects related to the driving issues of people with Parkinson’s disease, traumatic brain injury/post traumatic stress disorder/depression, seizure disorders such as epilepsy, and patients undergoing deep brain stimulation. We are also exploring the relationship of personality (e.g. extroverts, vs. introverts) to driving behaviors and driving performance. Future plans are that this research will extend beyond older drivers.

Researchers at I-MAP are interested in cross-disciplinary collaboration and affiliation with investigators at the University of Florida and beyond its campus borders. In addition to collaborations in the United States, I-MAP has formed partnerships with researchers in Canada, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Australia, Israel, and Japan; and its national and international expansion is expected to grow.

By funding projects essential to its mission, by tapping into the multi-disciplinary research pool at UF and beyond, by offering pre-doctoral and post-doctoral fellowships, and by using I-MAP’s existing infrastructure, support and resources we will establish I-MAP as a University of Florida center of excellence for research in mobility and transportation through the lifespan.

National Rural Behavioral Health Center

A collaboration between the College and the UF Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS), the NRBHC supports behavioral health scientists, educators, scholars, and practitioners dedicated to improving the health care status of rural Americans and focuses on: 1) recovery from rural disaster and trauma, 2) violence prevention, and 3) innovative models of health service delivery. NRBHC faculty have traveled to various states training Cooperative Extension professionals, health providers, mental health specialists, EMS personnel, policy makers, and teachers regarding the mental health effects of disasters, school violence, and other critical events.

The center’s activities have included the development of a curriculum entitled Triumph Over Tragedy: A Community Response to Managing Post-Disaster Stress targeted for Cooperative Extension, community leaders, first responders, health professionals, and mental health professionals who play an integral role in helping a community prepare for, respond to, and recover following a disaster. The curriculum was recently expanded to include community-wide mental health approaches to terrorism and bioterrorism, with a special focus on the needs of rural communities. In another partnership, the NRBHC has worked with the Columbia County School District on several grant projects aimed at reducing youth violence and the risk factors associated with violence. Faculty are also working with the Columbia County School District, Dixie County Public Health Department, and Veteran’s Administration primary care clinics to provide behavioral health services in rural communities.

Hearing Research Center

The Hearing Research Center has recently been re-established and brings together researchers, clinicians, and public health policy professionals interested in issues related to hearing and communication. The center’s missions are two-fold, including the discovery of new fundamental knowledge about hearing, hearing disorders, and the physical and biochemical processes that drive those disorders; and translation/application of those findings with corresponding public health outreach to effectively educate health professionals and public populations.

Center-initiated collaborations will complement efforts within the College of Public Health and Health Professions targeted towards joining public health professionals with their counterparts in the health professions. Pooled resources and expertise provide an opportunity for future scientists and health professionals to receive multidisciplinary research training and clinical training with the most current knowledge in the area of hearing loss and hearing protection. The center emphasizes the importance of translational research, and information dissemination to health professionals and the general public.

Center for Research on Telehealth and Assistive Technology

This center facilitates collaborative multidisciplinary research and clinical training in telehealth by providing specialized technology research, educational, and clinical support services resulting in improved access to health care throughout the state.

The following organizations and departments are currently involved in center activities. The American Telemedicine Association, the Department of Elder Affairs, the Florida Council on Aging, the North and Central Florida Alzheimer’s Association, the Northwest Florida Area Agency on Aging, the Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Advisory Committee, Easter Seals of Miami/Dade County in Florida, the National Rehabilitation Hospital, the Veterans Health Administration, and the University of Florida College of Dentistry. The center, in partnership with Elder Affairs, currently sponsors the AlzOnline project, an Internet and telephone-based system of support and information for caregivers of persons with Alzheimer’s disease.

Center for Pediatric Psychology and Family Studies

The focus of this center is on the relationships between physical and behavioral health, illness, and adjustment in children, youth, and families. Clinical child and pediatric psychologists, psychiatrists, pediatricians, and their students work collaboratively on a variety of research activities related to quality of life, adherence to medical treatments, pain and discomfort, coping with issues associated with chronic illness or injury, and the behavioral and social adjustment of children and families. The center currently supports projects evaluating treatment for children with ADHD, HIV, obesity, traumatic brain injury, asthma, obsessive compulsive disorders, and other health related problems. These interdisciplinary projects involve collaborative efforts between the UF Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, the UF Department of Psychiatry, and the UF Department of Pediatrics (e.g., Divisions of Immunology, Gastroenterology, Pulmonology, Neurology and Neurosurgery, and Hematology/Oncology). In addition, the center is active in supporting and organizing national conferences related to research in clinical child and pediatric psychology. For example, in 2006 the center was a co-sponsor of both the National Conference on Child Health Psychology and the National Conference on Parent-Child Interaction Therapy.

Center for Research in Psychophysiology

The Center for Research in Psychophysiology facilitates basic and applied research in human psychophysiology, coordinates training in psychophysiology at the predoctoral and postdoctoral levels, and encourages interaction and scientific communication among psychophysiologists at the University of Florida and between scientists at UF and the broader international community of psychophysiological researchers.

The related NIMH Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention is a multi-site, multidisciplinary, and international behavioral science research center, where scientists and scholars share a strong interest in the study of emotion, motivation, and attention. This center is fully funded by NIMH (P50 MH-72850). In addition to the headquarters at UF, with co-investigators from PHHP, Medicine, Engineering, and CLAS, it includes major collaborative projects at Emory University, the University of Minnesota, the University of Chicago, and Karolinska Institute and Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden.

In addition, the CSEA also has a number of affiliated investigators. The affiliated researchers share the general theoretical orientation of the primary center investigators, and have related, active programs of study in the area of emotion and attentional processes. They benefit from their association with the center in having access to the cores for technical consultation and media development, collaborative opportunities with CSEA investigators, and par-ticipation in CSEA meetings and conferences. There are currently 21 formally affiliated investigators, with laboratories both in the U.S. and abroad.

Center for Pain Research and Behavioral Health

Dedicated to the investigation and understanding of the experience of pain in humans and to educate future scientists and health professionals consistent with the most current knowledge in the area of pain, the center involves a collaboration of scientists from several disciplines (clinical psychology, dentistry, medicine, neuroscience, physical therapy, nursing) who have pooled their resources and expertise to more fully understand the etiology, diagnosis, and rehabilitation of pain conditions. Projects range from understanding factors contributing to differences in pain perception to prediction of treatment outcome in chronic pain. Students working in the lab also conduct research in several clinical settings including the Facial Pain Center, the Spine Center, Psychiatry Pain Center, and Rheumatology.

The Florida Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation (FIDR) and The Florida Trauma Rehabilitation Center for Returning Military Personnel (FTRC-RMP)

The mission of the FIDR is to advance knowledge through research and education in the area of rehabilitation of individuals to eliminate or minimize disability. Emphasis is on underlying mechanisms in the rehabilitation process and on the improvement of body structure/function through active treatment and compensatory strategies to increase activity and participation, and on the reintegration of individuals with disabilities into their families and communities following rehabilitation. The Florida Trauma Rehabilitation Center for Returning Military Personnel (FTRC-RMP) reflects a specific focus within the FIDR, to advance rehabilitation practice through research and education to meet the needs of returning military personnel from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.